What motivates Andrey Koreshkov, who enters the PFL World Tournament at welterweight this Thursday in Orlando, Florida, is more or less what has always motivated him.
A title, for one. The fact that fighting is his career. And that half million dollars in prize money, Koreshkov (28-5) would admit during this week’s PFL 1 media day, speaking with media outlets including Cageside Press.
“Of course having a new belt around my waist is great motivation, but also I would like to add that I do not view my career to be finished. I used to fight for Bellator for a long period of time, now it’s a new page, new era in my career,” Koreshkov said on Tuesday. “So I just keep going.”
Should he go all the way in the new-look PFL season (maybe we shouldn’t call it a season: it’s a win and move on grand prix, no more playoffs or points), Koreshkov will join a number of Russian standouts as PFL champion. That’s an added perk, and added motivation for the former Bellator welterweight champ.
“I consider fighters who come out of Russia to be one of the strongest if not the strongest in MMA, in the sport of MMA. And because of that, that would be good motivation to add my name in the list of guys who have already became PFL champions,” Koreshkov replied when asked about joining names like Shamil Musav, Magomed Magomedkerimov, and Movlid Khaybulaev as a PFL champ. “Which is a great success there.”
It’s not a Russian, but Jamaican “Ass-Kicking Machine” and fellow ex-Bellator champ Jason Jackson that Koreshkov faces on Thursday, as the PFL’s World Tournament kicks off. The pair might have shared heritage in MMA, but have yet to cross paths.
“Of course he was a champion in Bellator while I was still in the organization, and in theory myself and my team were viewing him as an opponent. And at one point we were close for me to become a challenger, but I decided to continue my career at PFL rather than fight for the Bellator title,” said Koreshkov on the match-up, and whether he was familiar with Jackson’s work. “So answering the question, yes, I’ve seen a lot of his fights, we viewed him as a potential opponent, and of course we have some thoughts about what could be done against him in the cage.”
Jackson has claimed that had he been in the promotion when Koreshkov was champ, the Russian might not have managed to secure gold. That was a suggestion that Andrey Koreshkov was quick to dismiss. Given they’d never fought, “we can only guess at what could have been. When I was a champion, he was not around,” stated Koreshkov. “Where was he when I was fighting as champion? Was he fighting at all? I’m not even sure. So I was the champion, case closed.”
Watch the full 2025 PFL 1 media day appearance by Andrey Koreshkov above.
